Truly Alive
by sarcasticReckoning
Summary: Aradia Megido is truly alive, for the first time in well, forever. And she intends to stay that way. One-shot, Aradia-centric. T for hinted gore.


**A fragment at the end of the _Make her pay_ segment, as well as the entire monologue from Aradia, are from Homestuck itself. And obviously I don't own Aradia.**

* * *

Your name is ARADIA MEGIDO, and you've always been able to hear the spirits.

* * *

The first time you heard them was when you were very young.

You didn't understand what they were saying. You only knew that they were telling you to do something.

So you did it.

* * *

The next few hundred times, the spirits told you to do stuff. Stuff you didn't want to do, and stuff you did want to do.

Later, you discovered that the spirits were simply telling you to do things that would help you and help everyone around you.

So even if it meant utter destruction, you listened to the spirits.

You trusted them - even with your life.

* * *

The voices have been getting louder.

_Make her pay_, they urge. _Make her see the error of her ways._

You clap your hands over your ears and shut them out, the first you have done since you were very small.

_Make her pay_, they whisper, and even with your hands over your ears you can hear them, clear as glass.

Over and over the spirits keep repeating, and finally you break.

It's a shame it had to come to this. You don't like summoning the spirits of the dead to settle scores.

But if she had to face her victims again, maybe she'd finally learn to feel remorse.

* * *

_You're dead._

Forget Vriska.

_You're dead._

Sollux killed you.

_You're dead._

Nepeta can't see you.

_You're dead._

You can't feel a thing.

_You're dead._

You feel no disgust when you talk to Equius.

_You're dead._

You feel no anger when you talk to Vriska.

_You're dead._

The spirits repeat the mantra in your head, over and over.

_You're dead._

You're just like them - the spirits you've been listening to since forever.

_You're dead._

You can't feel any physical pain anymore.

_You're dead._

You can't feel any emotions.

_You're dead._

Vriska broke your brain.

_You're dead._

You want to make her pay again...

_You're dead._

But do you really?

_You're dead._

Your name is Aradia Megido.

_You're dead._

You're a ghost.

_You're dead._

There is no flesh on what passes for your body, no blood that runs through your veins.

_You're dead._

Ahem, 'veins'.

_You're dead._

* * *

The voices lead you into an uncaring descent.

Soon, you prototype yourself.

The spirits quieten. Maybe they are satisfied.

Or maybe it is because you are not as dead anymore.

After tier-two prototyping, Equius provides you with a body.

_Ugh._

You cannot believe you kissed him. You really shouldn't have, that was such a mistake...

But you can feel now. You can feel physical pain, and you can feel your emotions now.

The spirits urge you again.

Revenge sweeps through your robot body, the blue blood thrumming for revenge.

_Make her pay._

* * *

The incipisphere locals have a more formal term for them.

They typically refer to such a rift as a scratch.

The direct effects of a scratch are limited to the session invoking it.

We would not experience or observe those effects from our session, but we would experience the consequences in the form of that which prevented us from claiming our reward.

He whose hand would be forced by the scratch to emerge from hiding.

But there would be no adequate way to prepare, even with all the foresight at our disposal.

For a foe more powerful than the king we will and have already defeated, for a demon who is indestructable, omnipotent, and enraged.

While the rest of the party would abscond, our duplicates would buy us time.

They would all be killed.

Again.

* * *

You're alive!

And god tier, to boot.

You're supposed to stall Jack.

Which, of course, you can do. For sure.

* * *

You survive to meet your descendants, who are all nice, really.

Except for Megido. Eurgh.

You feel truly alive for the first time, ever.

And you intend to stay that way.


End file.
